Trouble in Bank

Chapter 28

On Monday, Alex headed to the station near his village to catch a bus to the town. He decided not to use his father's car this time because he wanted to purchase a car of his own.

During the bus ride, Alex remained relaxed and composed, even though he noticed people giving him strange looks. He could sense their curiosity, probably wondering where this well-dressed man came from.

Despite the stares, Alex stayed composed and continued to sit, looking out of the window. As the bus stopped at various stations, the other passengers appeared to become aware of his presence and seemed somewhat apprehensive.

It was evident that Alex's presence stood out amid the surrounding crowd. He appeared detached from the outside world, and this contrast was quite noticeable.

Suddenly, a burly man entered the bus, making the passengers even more uncomfortable. Now, there were two intimidating figures amongst them. The tension in the air seemed to increase.

However, Alex remained unfazed, choosing to focus on his cell phone and browse the internet as if the situation around him didn't bother him. In contrast, the burly man, covered in tattoos, walked arrogantly towards Alex, drawing even more attention from the people on the bus.

Alex, who had a keen hearing, clearly heard the burly man's comment, but he remained indifferent to it. His main concern was reaching the city safely, and he chose to ignore the unnecessary attention.

However, to his surprise, the burly man approached him and embraced him in an overly friendly manner, pressing Alex's body hard and squeezing him. Although Alex felt uncomfortable with the situation, to an outsider, it might appear as though they were close friends or even brothers.

Before Alex could react or question the man's behavior, the man initiated a conversation.

"Hey, my friend, who's vouching for you?"

"Vouching for me?" Alex asked, confused by the sudden question.

"Don't pretend. This is my big brother's territory, and you can't just wander around here!" the man said in a seemingly friendly but threatening tone.

Alex was taken aback by the man's words. He had never expected that his simple trip to the city would cause unease among the local gangs.

"My friend, I don't have any guarantor. I'm just heading to the town to take care of some matters," Alex explained, still trying to be polite, thinking that the man might have misunderstood the situation.

However, the man completely disregarded Alex's friendliness and grew even more aggressive. "Do you think I'm a fool? Enough with the talking. The station is up ahead; I suggest you get off and leave my big brother's territory!" he warned.

Alex found the situation a bit amusing. "Heheheh, what if I don't want to get off?" he asked playfully.

The burly figure grew angrier, feeling mocked by Alex's response. He increased the pressure and tightened his grip on Alex's body.

But Alex, still smiling, didn't show any signs of fear or distress. His smile seemed to blossom like a rose despite the increasing pressure.

"Heheheh, it looks like you're really strong..." Alex said with a hint of contempt.

With that, Alex began to observe the other party casually and cheerfully, as if the situation didn't bother him at all.

When the burly figure saw Alex's expression, for some reason, his legs suddenly felt weak, as if they had been drugged. He felt a sense of emptiness and unease for a moment, and then he realized that his heart was beating very fast.

"Glup!" The burly figure involuntarily swallowed.

Alex then embraced the other party with his arms before finally applying pressure. The immense force made the burly figure extremely uncomfortable. He felt as if all the breakfast in his stomach would spill out if things continued.

Feeling scared at this point, the burly figure was taken aback when a friendly voice interrupted.

"This friend, could you step out at the next station? I don't appreciate the smell of your breath polluting the air around me."

Hearing those disrespectful words, the burly figure wasn't angry, but rather, he became even more frightened.

"Since you're so eager, why wait for the next station?" The burly figure didn't understand what the other party meant, but soon after, horror struck him.

His body was pressed down hard and he found himself floating in the air. Alex effortlessly lifted the gangster's massive body and moved forward, while attracting the attention of many passengers.

Alex then instructed the driver to stop the bus at the side of the road. The driver, fearful of the situation, complied with Alex's request.

Once they stopped, Alex opened the door and easily threw the burly man out of the bus, as if discarding mere garbage.

Seeing that the troublemaker had been dealt with, Alex ordered the driver to continue the journey.

"Alright, let's go."

"Y-yes, sir!" the driver stammered nervously.

With that, the bus sped away, leaving the burly man on the side of the road. The burly man had no idea what had just happened. Fear, worry, doubt, and anger swirled inside him, yet all these emotions seemed empty as if he had just been hypnotized.

Meanwhile, Alex remained calm and composed on the bus, unaffected by the incident. However, the episode left the other passengers uneasy. Many of them disembarked at the next station, leaving only Alex and the bus driver.

Unfazed by the attention he was receiving, Alex continued sitting until he reached his destination. Once he got off the bus, he walked confidently in a particular direction. Strangely, everyone he passed seemed to take a step back, creating a small gap between them and Alex.

Alex continued to walk, unaffected by the attention, until he reached a bank. As he entered the building, he once again became the center of stares. Even the security guards kept their eyes fixed on him as if he were a criminal.

Shaking his head, Alex realized that his extraordinary appearance drew people's attention wherever he went. Subconsciously, they couldn't help but stare at him.

Unfazed by the looks, Alex proceeded to take a lottery number. However, someone in the bank recognized him and began whispering to others, causing some commotion. As a result, Alex had to wait for an unusually long time. Even people who arrived later were served before him.

At first, Alex thought it might be a coincidence, but after observing for a while, he realized that his queue number had been skipped intentionally.

Alex felt a bit displeased at first, but he remained polite when he approached one of the staff members.

"Excuse me, it seems my number was not called and got skipped," Alex calmly pointed out.

The woman replied with a sneer, "Sir, as I mentioned before, you can take a new queue number and rejoin the line."

Feeling frustrated by the response, Alex held his anger and took a deep breath before saying, "I understand, but it's not fair that my number was skipped. Can you please address the issue properly?"

The woman seemed unimpressed and responded, "I'm sorry, there's nothing I can do. You'll have to get a new number."

Despite feeling the urge to explode and scold the staff, Alex decided to remain calm and find a solution to the problem.

But just as he was about to protest, suddenly a familiar voice sounded.

"Hello, what's wrong here?"

"Oh, it's Mr. Baka. This gentleman didn't pay attention to the announcements, so his number was skipped. But now he doesn't want to wait in line and claims that we didn't call his number," the staff explained.

"Ah, I see. Mr. Russell, I apologize for the inconvenience. Please go back and get a new number," Baka said kindly.

Alex felt a hint of sarcasm in Baka's tone. He sensed that the other party had some kind of natural dislike for him ever since the other party visited his house the last time. Alex even suspected that the current situation was somehow orchestrated by Baka.

"Mr. Baka, I believe there is something wrong with your bank's system. I want to pay off my bank loan debt, so please don't make things difficult for me," Alex calmly stated, trying to maintain his composure.

Baka, upon hearing Alex's words, suddenly showed a worried expression. "Oh, Mr. Russell, are you suggesting that our bank deliberately made a mistake? Please be responsible for your accusations."

Just as Alex was about to explain, a female voice intervened. "Master Baka, what is happening here? Is there a problem?"

"Oh no, Mrs. Pearl, it's just that this gentleman is mistaken and refuses to admit it, and he doesn't want to accept the consequences of his actions," Baka replied.

Pearl, eager to please the bank manager, chimed in, "Oh, I see. It's just some troublemaker trying to cause issues at Mr. Baka's bank. These people have no sense of responsibility!"

Alex, realizing that everything seemed planned and the two were joining hands against him, could only force a smile. "Was this all orchestrated from the beginning? How convenient for them to work together," he thought to himself.

"Mr. Baka, I reiterate that the mistake was made by your bank, not me. I don't seek conflict, but I won't tolerate being unfairly bullied," said Alex firmly.

"Mr. Russell, are you threatening me?" Baka retorted.

Realizing that the situation was turning against him, Alex felt his anger rise. He was even more frustrated when Pearl accused him of being a gangster.

Unwilling to let the situation escalate further, Alex tried to reason with Baka again. "Please, let's resolve this calmly. I just want to pay off my bank loan debt, and I expect to be treated fairly."

However, Baka had already called for security, and they approached the group with various equipment in hand, ready to intervene.

Alex sighed, feeling disappointed that his attempt at resolving the situation peacefully had failed. He braced himself for the upcoming confrontation with the security staff.